Dubai Ladies Masters retains spot on Ladies European Tour calendar

Ladies European Tour chief executive said yesterday that a new contract is all but signed to keep the season finale in Dubai for years into the future.

Jing Yan of China plays her tee shot on the eighth hole during the final round of the 2013 Omega Dubai Ladies Masters at the Emirates Golf Club. David Cannon / Getty Images

DUBAI // The top official at the Ladies European Tour (LET) said today that contract talks are all but signed to keep the season finale in Dubai for years into the future.

The contract with Golf in Dubai, the organisers of the Omega Dubai Ladies Masters, expires in 12 months, although an extension is close to completion.

The popular event first appeared on the LET calendar in 2006, was won in its first two iterations by Annika Sorenstam, and has remained on the rota ever since.

"This event will continue, so far it's all set," said Ivan Khodabakhsh, who took over as the LET's chief executive 12 months ago. "We're clarifying a few details because, for me, it's very important to see how we can have improvements.

"I have a holistic view on this. It's not just the situation on what the prize money will be next year, but also what more can the LET bring to this region."

He said the LET is broadly investigating the possibility of expanding its in the Gulf region. At the moment, Europe's premier women's tour has only the Dubai tournament on its portfolio.

The Gulf, and the UAE in particular, already boasts a strong influence on the sport. The European Tour, the leading men's circuit outside the United States, launched the Race to Dubai in 2009, which sees the emirate host the season-concluding tournament, the DP World Tour Championship, every November.

The European Tour's crucial Desert Swing, a trio of January events in Abu Dhabi, Qatar and Dubai, has a combined 2014 prize fund for the three tournaments of $7.7m (Dh28.2m) and traditionally draws some of the year's best fields.

While it is doubtful the LET could follow a similar route, Khodabakhsh said that Abu Dhabi is an obvious candidate for inclusion on the schedule in future, though he did not offer any specifics.

"This region has great events all around, in golf and other sports, so I don't question its experience at all," he said. "It's about what the story behind is; what can we create.

"And it's also not just to copy what the European Tour is doing here, but create a value that is unique to the Ladies European Tour to be in a particular place.

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"We've a lot of people talking to us from the region, but again, for me, sustainable growth is most important," he said.

Khodabakhsh used his first anniversary as LET chief executive to announce the calendar for next year, which remains unchanged in the number of tournaments (22) and has maintained all its sponsors, with a slight increase in total prize money (?500,000) over the year.

Khodabakhsh said he spent his initial season devising a three-year business plan, which is one of the reasons why he has yet to look more closely at developing the ladies' game in the Gulf.

"I haven't had a chance to spend real time in this region," he said. "And you don't come to partnerships by email. You have to be present, and properly be present.

"Absolutely, we'd investigate more tournaments here. We actually have certain ideas, but those are ideas that have yet to be completed or made into proper concepts."

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